


Questioning Grace

by Josh89



Series: NYC Grace [10]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Case Fic, Crime Fighting, Crimes & Criminals, Detectives, Don't copy to another site, F/F, F/M, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Forgery, Not Canon Compliant - The Trials of Apollo, Post-The Heroes of Olympus, Secrets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 02:30:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21236678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Josh89/pseuds/Josh89
Summary: After talking to Jason Gardner and getting some valuable information, Tobias and his partner head to the victim's apartment to find out what her roommate knows!





	Questioning Grace

“Do you think Jason hired Libra to kill Jennifer?” Aaron queried as they left the art gallery.  
Tobias shook his head. “It’s like he said. He needed those photos of art forgery before he could come to us. Since Jennifer was meant to deliver them to him anyway, he had no reason to kill her. Regardless, we’ll talk to his wife and check both the gallery’s security footage and his car’s GPS log. Can you take care of that when we get back to the Precinct later?”  
Tobias’s partner grinned at him over the top of their car, holding up the small USB drive that the gallery’s chief of security had given them. “You bet. Are we stopping anywhere in particular first?” he queried.  
Tobias nodded, glancing down at his phone and then back up at his partner. “That’s the plan. We need to speak to someone who knew the victim and didn’t tell us the whole truth about their relationship the last time we spoke. A certain red-haired woman, to be exact”.  
“Karen Osbourne”.  
Tobias nodded grimly, as both detectives got into the car and settled into the leather seats. Once both had done their seatbelts up properly, Tobias started the car, while Aaron keyed the address that they had on file for the victim, and her partner, into the car’s GPS. “You know it. We both know she had no reason to want Jennifer dead, so she’s not exactly a suspect, but I would like to know why she lied to us when she said that Jennifer wasn’t seeing anyone”.  
Aaron shrugged, nodding. “Let’s go then”.  
The drive to the apartment building where Karen lived was short, and the duo made the most of it, using the time to catch each other up on the events of the last couple of days. All too soon, Tobias was pulling into a parking lot just outside the building before stopping the car and undoing his seatbelt. “Alright, this is the place. Apartment 3A is Karen’s”.  
“I know. I memorized the file, same as you” Aaron replied calmly, his tone even.  
Tobias walked over to the building door and gave the handle a sharp pull, sighing when there was no movement. “Locked. Try the intercom panel, see if you have any luck”.  
“You got it”.  
Crossing to the small metal panel set into the wall just to the right of the door, Aaron quickly located the button for Apartment 3A. There was a sharp buzzing sound as he pressed it, and the next thing they heard was a familiar woman’s voice. “Hello?”  
“Ms. Osbourne, it’s Detectives Grace and Miles. Can we come up? We have some further questions about your roommate’s murder that we’d like to ask you”.  
There was a short pause before the woman responded. “Of course. I’ll open the door for you, come right up”.  
It was only a couple of minutes later that the two detectives were sitting opposite the red-haired young woman in a small, though tastefully decorated, living room. “What can I help you with, detectives?”  
Aaron leaned forward. “We spoke to Jason Gardner at his gallery, Ms. Osbourne. He told us that, contrary to what you said last time we asked you, Jennifer Reynolds was in a relationship. With a woman matching your description. Why didn’t you tell us the truth before?” Tobias queried, his voice soft and gentle.  
Karen Osbourne looked surprised. “But we weren’t seeing each other, detectives”.  
“Karen. Please, stop lying to us”.  
“I swear I’m not lying”.  
Karen sighed, brushing tears from her eyes. “We weren’t seeing each other. The term ‘seeing someone’ refers to the early stage of the relationship. We were past that stage. We passed it months ago, in fact. Three days ago, Jennifer proposed to me, and I said yes. We were engaged. We were engaged and in love and then some sick, twisted, person took her life, took the girl of my dreams, the woman I love (and still do love, because I refuse to use the past tense to refer to her) from me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the whole truth earlier, but I… I just couldn’t process this. I’m still not fully processing it, to be honest. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to. Now, is that all?”  
Tobias shook his head, leaning forward. “Not quite. Were you aware that Jason Gardner and your fiancée were working together to obtain proof of art forgery to bring to the police?”  
The red-haired woman blinked in surprise. “No, I had no idea. I knew that she was helping him with something, but I would never have guessed that that was what they were working on. Jennifer’s always been a firm believer in going to the police as soon as she had proof of something, sometimes even when she just suspected it. That was certainly a habit that didn’t make her any friends at the local police precincts”.  
Tobias laughed quietly. “I can imagine. And if you don’t mind, would you please tell us exactly what happened last night, starting from when your fiancée left work?”  
“If you think that I had anything to do with the death of the girl I loved, detective, then you’re on the wrong track”.  
“We don’t think you did, Karen. We’re just trying to put together a timeline of the events surrounding her death, that’s all”.  
The red-haired woman nodded. “There’s not much I can tell you that you don’t already know, honestly. Jennifer and I were supposed to finish work at 11:30 last night, but she left an hour earlier to run an errand (which I now know was for Jason Gardner) and I agreed to cover for her. The rest of the shift was relatively quiet, and I was able to leave without a problem when 11:30 came. I took a taxi to Tivondra, where I stayed until closing time at 3 this morning, and then I took a taxi home. I got home just after 3:15 this morning, as the security cameras would have shown, and then I came straight up here and went to bed. When I woke up about 30 minutes before you called me this morning and Jenn still wasn’t in bed, I figured that she’d just spent the night running errands or something and fallen asleep on the couch, since she’s done that before. I guess I was wrong though”.  
Tobias nodded solemnly. “I guess so. Did your fiancée seem odd, emotionally-speaking, when she left work last night?”  
“I’m not sure I understand the question”.  
“Did she seem unusually stressed, anxious, worried, or concerned about anything when she left?” Aaron asked gently, clarifying Tobias’s question.  
“Now that I think about it, yes. She did seem unusually stressed last night, I asked her what was wrong, but she just shrugged it off as a combination of wedding research/planning and the long shifts we’ve been working, and said that she’d be fine once she had a chance to rest. I thought she was telling me the truth, given how busy work’s been for us lately (especially the last couple of days), but I suppose there was just more to it than she was letting on”.  
“I suppose so. One more question. Have you ever heard of the Libra Killer?”  
She blinked in surprise. “The contract killer who’s one of the most wanted serial killers in the country. Yes, of course I’ve heard of him. He’s the one that did this?”  
Aaron nodded. “We found his signature next to her body. We’re still trying to work out who hired him to kill her, but we’re slightly closer than we were last time we spoke. And… I know this is hard for you, and we can get a warrant if that’s what you’d prefer, but we’re going to need access to financial records and phone records for both you and Jennifer. We don’t believe you had anything to do with her murder, nor do we believe that your fiancée put a contract on herself (obviously), but our captain and the D.A will want to be sure”.  
The woman sitting across from the two detectives paused for a couple of minutes to digest what she’d just been told before finally nodding. “Of course, detectives. Whatever you need. Anything to help track down the son of a bitch who did this and put them away for good”.  
“We may have to hold you to that in the future. Thank you for your time, Miss Osbourne. We’ll be in touch if we find anything”.  
The woman nodded. “That’s all I ask, detectives. Good luck”.  
As both detectives stood and left the apartment, Tobias spotted a younger red-haired woman coming up the stairs. He nudged his partner, indicating the woman. “Monica Osbourne?” Aaron queried.  
The woman looked up in surprise. She smiled warmly as her eyes met Tobias’s, and then widened in confusion as she registered the fact that the two detectives were standing outside her sister’s apartment. “Detectives Grace and Miles? Well this is certainly a surprise. What’s going on? Is Karen okay?”  
“Your sister’s fine. We were talking to her about a case we’re working on” Tobias said simply.  
Monica frowned. “She’s not involved in whatever you suspect her of, detectives. My sister is a good person”.  
“We just had a couple of questions for her regarding the victim, who we’ve learned was your sister’s fiancée” Tobias clarified.  
Monica blinked in surprise. “Jennifer’s dead? I’m sorry to hear that. She and my sister were a cute couple”.  
“What makes you assume that she’s dead?” Aaron asked.  
The younger red-haired girl stared at him in disbelief. “I put two and two together. You’re homicide detectives. You investigate deaths. The fact that you said the victim ‘was’ Karen’s fiancée. Was is past tense, meaning that she’s either no longer alive, or that she’s still alive but no longer engaged to my sister. Since they loved each other more than anything or anyone else in the world, and thus were incredibly unlikely to call off their engagement or break up, the only option that makes sense is that one of them is dead. Since you’re both investigating, it’s obviously a murder and not an accident, and you said that my sister was fine, which means the only remaining option is that Jennifer Reynolds, my sister’s fiancée, is dead”.  
Tobias laughed as his partner shrugged. “Makes sense”.  
Leaning against the wall, Tobias turned to his partner. “Aaron, could you give us a minute? Call Ruby and ask her to look through the database for any other similar cases to this one. Have her flag any and all Libra cases as well as any recent cases of art forgery, okay? I’ll meet you down at the car”  
“You just want to be alone with your girlfriend” Aaron smirked teasingly.  
Tobias rolled his eyes. “What are you, five? Just get it done”.  
His partner nodded. “No problem, I’ll see you down there”.  
Monica stepped aside, allowing the detective to move past her and down the stairs, before sinking down onto the floor next to where Tobias was sitting. After a couple of seconds, she looked up at him, her eyes wide. “Did he just refer to me as your girlfriend?” she queried.  
Tobias sank to the floor next to her. “He did. I know we haven’t made anything official yet (hell, we haven’t even had our first date yet, unless you count the drinks we got last night) and we have no idea how things are going to work out, but I actually really liked the sound of calling you my girlfriend”.  
Monica smiled warmly at him, pressing a light kiss to his cheek and squeezing his hand. “I liked the sound of it too. How about we go along with it for now, see how tomorrow night goes, and then go from there?” she suggested.  
“I think that sounds like a plan”.  
“Good”.  
Monica sighed softly. “The next few weeks are going to be really rough for Karen, aren’t they?” she queried.  
“That’s an understatement. She’s just lost someone she loved more than anything, Monica. She’s going to be mourning this for a long time. It’ll get easier as time goes by, of course, but the pain and grief never really go away”.  
His girlfriend nodded solemnly. “I was afraid of that. Is there anything I can do to help her?”  
“Just be there for your sister right now. Once my team and I solve the case and can give her that closure, that satisfaction of knowing who was responsible for Jennifer’s death, then she’ll be able to start to heal”.  
“I can do that”.  
Tobias nodded, standing. “Good. Hopefully we’ll have this case solved by tomorrow”.  
His red-haired girlfriend shrugged. “Well, if not we can always reschedule dinner. It’d be a shame, especially since I don’t think Forbidden Planet is playing any other night, but we’ll manage. Give me a call when you know what’s going on, alright? We can just go from there”.  
“Sounds good”.  
The detective stood and helped his girlfriend to her feet, watching as she walked down the hallway and knocked on her sister’s door. As if she could feel him watching her, she looked up, smiling warmly at him and giving him a little wave. He waved back, making a ‘call you later’ gesture with one hand, before turning and walking down the stairs.  
As he re-joined Aaron outside the building, his partner pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the screen before slipping it away again. “Did you talk to Ruby like I asked?” Tobias queried.  
His darker-haired partner nodded. “Of course, I did. She said she’ll let us know if she finds anything”.  
Both men quickly buckled their seatbelts and Tobias started the car. “Let’s head back to the Precinct then”.  
Approximately forty-five minutes later, they were stepping out of the elevator onto the Homicide floor of the Precinct. As they came down the hallway that led into the bullpen, Tobias noticed a small group of men and women standing on the other side of the room, studying the whiteboard that they had set up (which they called the murder-board). “Excuse me?” Tobias queried as Aaron slipped into the chair by his desk.  
The closest of the five turned, nodding as he saw them. “Detective Miles and Grace, I assume?”  
He was tall and stern-looking, with pale skin, short black hair and light, icy, blue eyes. He was wearing a black suit jacket and pants over a black striped shirt with a white tie and was obviously the man in charge of the small group.  
Tobias nodded warily. “That’s us. And you are?”  
“I’m Supervisory Special Agent and Team Leader Caleb Chance, FBI”.  
He gestured to the young woman beside him. She was maybe a couple of months older than Tobias himself and she was tall, with light golden-brown skin, hazel eyes, and close-cropped brownish black hair with burgundy streaks. She was wearing a light blue shirt under a black jacket, black jeans, and low-heeled shoes. As Agent Chance indicated her, she stepped forward, nodding politely, and held out her hand to shake Tobias’s. “Senior Special Agent Bianca Velasco, the team media liaison and lead hostage negotiator. I’m Agent Chance’s second in command. It’s good to meet you”.  
Her voice had a slight accent to it. Tobias couldn’t make out quite what it was, but it was interesting. Something he hadn’t heard in a while. He nodded, shaking her hand. “It’s nice to meet you too”.  
As she nodded before walking back to the desk that separated them from the murder-board, the lead agent nodded to the woman on his other side. She was tall (slightly taller than Agent Velasco) with pale skin, shoulder-length black hair, and piercing green eyes, and was wearing a black one-piece jumpsuit with a white jacket, with plain black trainers. “Senior Special Agent Savannah Hayes. Lead profiler. Nice to meet you”.  
“Nice to meet you too”.  
As Tobias spoke, the newly introduced agent shook his outstretched hand, before nodding to the two remaining agents. Both were male and appeared to be in their early thirties. One had well-tanned skin with blonde hair and brown eyes wearing blue jeans and a white shirt under a black jacket and black trainers, the other was pale skinned with brown hair and eyes who was wearing very similar clothing. “These two are Special Agents Harry Marshall and Carl Short. Harry Marshall is our historian and art expert and Carl Short is a former sniper in Iraq and now a profiler like me” Savannah Hayes said simply.  
“Are there any more of your team? I know the FBI prefers to work in large groups” Aaron queried from where he was sitting.   
Carl Short, the more pale-skinned of the two agents they’d just been introduced to, nodded. “There are. We have two other profilers and a tech expert, who are currently setting up a command centre in the conference room. If that’s alright”.  
Tobias nodded. “Of course. Probably the best place for you to establish a command centre. If you don’t mind me asking though, what brings the FBI to this Precinct?”  
“When Detective Heat was searching for recent art forgery cases, it pinged something in our database. We’ve been trying to track down an art forgery ring operating in New York for the past few months, but we haven’t quite had any luck. Then we got another ping when she was searching for the recent Libra killings, realized that your team might be working on a case that ties into the major one we’ve been working, and came out here to help right away”.  
“What do you want in exchange for your help? We’ve dealt with the FBI before, and those dealings have been… messy at best”  
“We want the leaders of the art forgery ring. You can have the rest of their people as well as the Libra Killer” Agent Chance replied.  
Tobias could see Agent Velasco look quickly at Agent Hayes behind their team leader’s head. It was an extremely brief look, and her eyes flicked back before there was any chance of the other woman’s eyes meeting hers, but (unless Tobias was wrong) there was something in that brief glance that implied more than just friendship, at least on the brown-haired Agent’s part. Tobias nodded, shaking Agent Chance’s hand. “You have a deal”.


End file.
